The NBA had a full schedule on Friday night, one that included the Boston Celtics. The defending Eastern Conference champions have been winning a lot lately. On Friday, they were on the road against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The Pelicans did not have Zion Williamson for the game due to a foot problem. They struggled in the game without him, losing to the Celtics by a score of 117-109. Boston has now won nine in a row and they will likely take over the top spot in our post-weekend Top Ten NBA Power Rankings.
Milwaukee loses to the Philadelphia
The top-ranked team in our rankings, the Milwaukee Bucks, was also in action. They have been cold lately and on Friday they lost another game. The 76ers defeated the Bucks 110-102.
Joel Embiid scored 32 points in the game and grabbed 10 rebounds as the 76ers improved to 8-7 on the season. Meanwhile, the Bucks dropped to 11-4 with all of the losses coming in their last six games. One major takeaway from this game is that Tyrese Maxey did not play in the second half. The guard for the 76ers hurt his foot and Philly backers will need to be mindful of his injury updates.
Utah Jazz end losing streak
The Utah Jazz entered Friday as losers of three straight. They hosted the Phoenix Suns looking to put an end to that mini-slump. Behind 38 points out of Lauri Markkanen, the Jazz edged the Suns 134-133.
The game might be remembered for how it ended. The Suns had possession down by three in the waning seconds but missed a three-pointer as the seconds dwindled.
Devon Booker, who had 49 points in the game, grabbed the offensive rebound but decided to shoot a close-range shot as time expired. It's not clear whether there was time for a pass out to the three-point range but he did have Cameron Payne open and waiting. The situation definitely called for taking the chance as a two-point shot, even though it was converted, basically sealed the deal.
Luka Doncic has a triple-double
The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Denver Nuggets 127-99 on Friday night. Denver had no answer for Luka Doncic. The MVP betting favorite (bet365) had a triple-double with 33 points, 11 assists, and 12 rebounds.
The Nuggets played the road game without Nikola Jokic. He was out due to COVID protocols and Denver didn't have anyone step up. DeAndre Jordan had just 7 rebounds and 6 points in the game. Zeke Nnaji logged 21 minutes but he had just 4 points and 1 rebound in the game.
Dallas improved to 9-6 overall and they are 8-2 from home. Meanwhile, the Nuggets are also 9-6 on the season.
Other results in the NBA: November 18th, 2022
The Cleveland Cavaliers ended their five-game losing streak. They had to go to double overtime against Charlotte, one of the worst teams in the NBA, to do it. The final score was 132-122 with Darius Garland leading all scorers with 41 points.
The Golden State Warriors continued to play well at home this season. They defeated the New York Knicks 111-101 to improve to 7-1 as hosts this season. Steph Curry had just 24 points in the game, a low total by some of his recent outings. However, that was still a game-high for both teams.
